Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Carnival of Heels and Souls

"One can protest against evil; it can be unmasked and, if need be, prevented by force.  Evil always carries the seeds of its own destruction, as it makes people, at the least, uncomfortable.

Against folly we have no defense.  Neither protests nor force can touch it; reasoning is no use; facts that contradict personal prejudices can simply be disbelieved — indeed, the fool can counter by criticizing them, and if they are undeniable, they can be just pushed aside as trivial exceptions. 

So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self-satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take much to make him aggressive.  A fool must therefore be treated more cautiously than a scoundrel; we shall never again try to convince a fool by reason, for it is both useless and dangerous." 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer 

 

"That the rate of interest will be lower when commerce languishes and when there is little demand for money, than when the energies of commerce are in full play and there is an active demand for money, is indisputable; but it is equally beyond doubt, that every speculative mania which has run its course of folly and disaster in this country has derived its original impulse from cheap money." 

The Economist, 1858

 

"He will perish for lack of self-restraint; and will be lost because of an abundance of foolishness."

Proverbs 5:23

 

The stock futures did a major pop and flop, rallying in the overnight, and cracking down lower during the day trade.

The cause was a mix of disappointment over the lack of stimulus and fiscal response, and also the cessation of shenanigans from Friday's option expiration.

The Dollar continued on a bit lower.

The VIX was higher with the perception of increased risk, aka uncertainty.

Gold and silver were both sharply higher during the day, but gave up much of their gains in the afternoon.

No matter how loud and how stubbornly foolish one may be, in the end, life is a school of probability. 

Have a pleasant evening.

 

Harvest Moon

 

When we were strangers 
I watched you from afar
When we were lovers 
I loved you with all my heart
But now it's gettin' late
And the moon is climbin' high
I want to celebrate
See it shinin' in your eye
Because I'm still in love with you
I want to see you dance again
Because I'm still in love with you
On this harvest moon.

 

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Storm Warnings

"It begins with a highly complex financial system, whose very complexity makes it difficult for anyone to know what might be going wrong; by definition, the multiple parts of the financial system are linked, which means that trouble in one institution, city, or region can travel easily and quickly to others.

Buoyant growth in the economy makes the financials system more fragile, in part due to the demand for capital and in part due to the tendency of some institutions to take on more risk than is prudent.   Leaders in government and the financials sector implement policies that advertently or inadvertently increase the exposure to risk of crisis. 

An economic shock hits the financials system.  The mood of the market swings from optimism to pessimism, create a self-reinforcing downward spiral.  Collective action by leaders can arrest the spiral, though the speed and effectiveness which they act ultimately determines the length and severity of the crisis." 

Robert Bruner and Sean Carr, The Panic of 1907

 

Stocks did a mild pop 'n flop, or a wash and rinse as you may prefer, in honor of the stock market index options expiration.

Gold, silver, and The Dollar were lower.

The VIX was slightly elevated.

Outside of algo-driven trading shenanigans, I am not confident that The Street has a better idea of what's going on, or coming over the horizon, than most others who are at least mildly informed.

Nonetheless, something of note is coming, and it looms closer by the day.

Have a pleasant weekend.

 

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - And the Love of Most Will Grow Cold

 

"These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me."  

Isaiah 29:13 

 

"The U.S. went off the gold standard in August 1971.  With no benchmark, central banks could print money and debase currencies.  That opened the door for huge bailouts after big banks screwed up in a big way. Taxpayers—not incompetent bankers—paid the price.  

By [the late 1980’s], the Federal Reserve Bank and large U.S. banks had established a pattern to control the public relations damage each time banks had a major screw-up: accountants and regulators let banks lie about the size of the problem to stall for time; the Federal Reserve blew smoke at the media; finally, the Fed would bail out the banks in a way that most taxpayers would not understand.  

Banks didn’t have to get smarter or more competent.  The Fed trained the banks that uninformed taxpayers would eat the losses, and fake accounting would let bank officers keep their positions and their money." 

Janet Tavakoli, Decisions: Life and Death on Wall Street 

 

"Beware the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hollow hypocrisy. There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, and hidden, that shall not be made known. Whatever has been said in the darkness shall be heard in the light: and what has been whispered behind closed doors shall be shouted from the roof tops." 

Luke 12:1-3 

Stocks were off to a rocky start today, but managed to gain back much of their losses into the close.

The cheerleaders and spokesmodels for Wall Street were pleased.

Gold and silver and the Dollar all rallied today.

If you are not going to be careful about what you read, what you take into your minds and hearts, at least be wary of spreading lies and snares to your friends and children.  

For I have rarely seen such zealous behavior than from those who wish to share their self-deception and sins with others.   

And if you ask them nicely to stop sending this sort of thing to you they say, don't you want to be informed?   And they are angered, because they are not motivated by love, but by anger and self-love and pride.   And they cannot bear to see themselves in the light.

They wish to persuade others in order to ease the voice of their own conscience, that whispers to them, 'this is wrong.' And so they seek distractions, and wallow in them, while they give their hearts away.

Have a pleasant evening.